By Chris Totobela
A decent crowd made its way to the Miki Yili Stadium in Extension 5 on Sunday, 3 December. On show was the World Aids Day Awareness tournament for young girls. The tournament was aimed at promoting awareness around the issue of HIV/Aids and also to remember men and women who dedicated their lives to helping communities.
It was a fun-filled family day, but the girls’ football was the main attraction. The Department of Sport, Recreation, Arts and Culture donated the prizes for the girls’ 5-a-side soccer tournament that entertained the crowd with some scintillating skills.
The two teams to reach the final were RSA and Morocco, and they battled it out for the ultimate prize. The game started with both teams trying to gain control of the game, but RSA settled much quicker than their opponents. Their dominance was rewarded when they scored two quick goals via the boot of Sisonke Fihlani and Emihle Dyonashe, taking a two-goal cushion to the halftime break.
In the second half, Morocco tried to fight back but was caught napping by a brilliant goal from Owam Dyonashe before Emihle Dyonashe completed her brace and sealed it for RSA. The final score was 4-0 to the champions.
RSA captain Siso Fihlani told Grocott’s Mail how happy her team was: “We played very well throughout this tournament, and we are happy that we got our revenge after losing to them in the group stages. This was a good initiative, and we will be back to defend our trophy next year.”
Athule Hempe of Morocco was named the player of the tournament, and she was over the moon. “I’m happy for this award even though we lost in the final. We were a bit tired in the final, but congratulations to team RSA. They deserved it.
“I would like to thank all those who made this event possible and everyone who came to support us, and lastly, I would like to wish everyone a safe and wonderful festive season,” she said.
The youngest participant in the event was 10-year-old Thimna Kosi, who played for Ghana and left the crowd speechless with how well she played at such a young age.
